RIO GRANDE DO SUL TO GAROPABA.
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| "Oryx" off Laranjal. Photo courtesy of Leonardo of "Prowind.com,br" |
Rio Grande.
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| "Oryx" alongside "Bucaneiro" off the Oceanographic Institute, Rio Grande. |
We met Joao de Ribeira, who also works for the institute and
on our return from clearing in and shopping, he invited us on boat the
institute’s motor launch to share his birthday cake. This was the start of many
new friendships forged in the southernmost state of Brazil.
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| Joao of the Oceanographic institute. |
Rio Grande is
one of the oldest cities in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. It served as the state capitol between
1835 and 1845. It is the most important port in the state and one of the
biggest maritime ports in Brazil. It is named after the channel, which
indirectly connects the Atlantic to the fresh water lagoons of Lagoa do Patos and Lagoa Mirim.
As we sailed into the port, the evidence of Brazil’s burgeoning
economy was very evident. The weather was still cooler than we were accustomed
to in Brazil, but the frisson of joy that makes Brazil so vibrant was evident
on the faces of passer-by’s.Brazil is so COOL - everyone smiles!
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| Importing Camaros in the boom times. |
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| Naval chapel. |
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| Past opulence, too. |
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| Isn't this haram in Lebanon? |
The Portuguese explorer Martin Alfonso de Sousa who sought to fortify the area
from French corsairs founded the town. He was later appointed as the first
governor of Brazil. The town was initially called Rio Grande de Sao Pedro
and in 1669 the Portuguese effectively swapped it for Colonia del Sacramento in Uruguay. Settlers from the Azores and Madeira arrived in 1750 in an attempt
to settle the disputed border area. These immigrants were followed by an influx
of Germans, Swiss, Italians and Lebanese who all add to the eclectic mix.
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| Hawk poised on "Bucaneiro" |
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| Oceanographic Institutes museum. |
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| Terrapins in the sun. |
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| Sunfish exhibit in Oceanographic Museum. |
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| Whale bones. |
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| Entrance to Yacht Club Rio Grande. |
We stayed in Rio Grande for
a few days before setting off to explore the 100-mile long fresh water lagoon
of Lagoa dos Patos.
We followed the ferry route and had to contend with the car ferry in the narrow
channel.
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| This photo was taken by a friend of Joao, Sergio Klaes Roig when we left the second time. |
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| "Oryx" From "Bucaneiro" |
After setting off we sailed along an area where wooden stakes mark the
shoals, all tricky stuff. We had already decided only to sail by day, although
there is a fully buoyed channel for ships all the way to Porto Alegre, but as usual we were exploring
the small towns and anchorages en route. We were barely underway, when the wind
headed us, so we decided to make an unscheduled stop at a small town called Laranjal.
Laranjal.
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| Approaching Laranjal. Courtesy Leonardo "Prowind". |
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| The same two fishing boats. |
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| Oryx approaching Laranjal.(Leo Prowind) |
As we sailed over another yacht approached and we took
photos of one another. The following morning Pete went ashore to buy bread and
fresh produce, whilst I tidied up. The wind was due to fill in later. A chap in
a canoe rowed over. It was the one chap from the previous days yacht. Leo
presented me with a flash disc with the photos he had taken. He did not come on
board and he didn't want the flash disc back! We seldom have photos of “Oryx”
sailing, so we were delighted. He runs a sailing/ windsurfing/kite boarding
school at nearby Pelotas called “Prowind.”
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| Beach of Laranjal. |
Sao Lourenco do Sul.
Tapes.
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| "Crake" n the beach at Tapes. |
It took us a couple of days to reach the next town of Tapes. It
has a small yacht club, but we were unsure as to the depth of the channel, so
we anchored in 2 m and rowed ashore. We walked into the town, which was once a
rice growing and transporting hub. At the yacht club we learnt that the channel
was 1.8 m deep.
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| Its colder in southern Brazil! |
Porto Alegre was now tantalizingly close, so we set
off once again. When the wind picked up, the water became more skittish and the
movement going to windward more pronounced. Still ‘Oryx’ was behaving well and
we were enjoying the trip. We anchored once more along the way, but on the next
day we had south westerlies to wend us on our way. We approached our chosen
destination just as the light bled from the sky. The wind had picked up and we
were sailing around a headland with a lighthouse. The lighthouse was so close,
that we woke the keeper’s dog and as we approached the wind swirled and
suddenly ‘Oryx’ was not responding to the tiller. It felt like something out of
Homer, we seemed to swirl in the wrong direction and I had fleeting thoughts of
Scylla and Charybdis. (The dog would have been Charybdis!).
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| Scylla and Charybdis Lighthouse. |
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| Actually known as Farol Itapua. |
The captain of
‘Oryx’ is less encumbered by flights of fancy, and he simply put on the engine
and dispelled all the demons with a whiff of diesel. We anchored in a beautiful
bay, surrounded by mountains.
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| We met 'Rio Grande do Sul in the narrow channel. |
Porto Alegre.
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| Rich and poor -cheek by jowl. |
We awoke to a grey, drizzly day, which was a pity because the
photos did not do the area justice. We set off sailing along the main shipping
channel and although the wind was fresh to start with, it soon petered out, so
we motored the rest of the way, arriving in Porto Alegre in the late afternoon. We anchored
between two of the yacht clubs. The following morning we rowed up to a small
dock belonging to the Yacht Club Guaiba.
We asked permission to leave the dinghy and this caused great consternation.
The gentleman at the gatehouse arranged a lift for us to the Club offices,
where we muddled along in our bad Portuguese.
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| Iate Clube Guiaba. |
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| Recycling made fun at yacht club. |
They were quite happy for us to leave the dinghy, but wanted
‘Oryx’ alongside, too. They had the usual arrangement of box berths, which is
awkward for ‘Oryx’ not only because she is Beamy, but also because we have only one
engine. I managed to explain this to the secretary Carmen, but the marineiro, Dois, found us a suitable spot. In the
meantime Pete had spoken to the commodore who asked how long we were staying
and when he heard four or five
days, he said we were welcome to stay for a month! It seemed churlish to
refuse, so we rowed back to ‘Oryx’ and motored slowly into the open spot. The
club is beautiful and we not only had water and electricity on the dock, but
rapid wifi and warm showers.
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| "Oryx" alongside! |
Mr. Friendly at the gatehouse directed us to the nearest bus stop
and off we went, en route into town I sat beside a Brazilian woman, who when
she heard we were estrangeros welcomed us to the city and helped us
hop off the bus, near the port captain. Thus was the start of an amazing visit
to a beautiful city, with fabulous people.
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| The Mercado Publico has various fresh food markets, a myriad of stalls and small restaurants! |
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| Vibrant city life. |
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| Atlas didn't shrug. |
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| The City Hall |
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| Africa's indelible footprint adds to the vibrancy of Brazil. |
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| Another amazing cathedral. |
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Guarani suffering the rain.
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The city has a scenic beauty enhanced by the nearby hills and the huge lagoons. The area is fertile and plums, peaches and cassava are cultivated nearby.
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| Mirrored lagoon. |
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| City of Porto Alegre. |
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| Gaucho museum. |
We had decided against going by bus to Gramado. It was a two-hour bus ride and
the weather didn't look too good. Instead we planned to spend the weekend
catching up on jobs. On Saturday morning I hopped ashore to use the facilities
and found a Brazilian man admiring ‘Oryx’. He spoke very little English, but between
us I managed to answer some of his technical questions about the boat, before
referring him to Pete.
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| Mauro poses with the model of a sculpture he has been commissioned to do. |
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| Sketch of proposed harbour with sculpture. |
Pete, I think, has a bit of a phobia about speaking foreign
languages badly, dating back to an early childhood experience where he taught
his French Canadian kindergarten class to speak English. However, he is fluent
in nautuguese and boatuguese. Nautuguese is the language of sailors, which I
used to find pretentious…you know galleys, heads, abaft the beam etc. These
words now trip off my tongue, unheeded. Boatuguese is the ability to discuss boats in all
languages. The draft, the beam, the length, the keel etc. After a short
conversation in boatuguese Pete had made a new friend. When Mauro
heard that we had not yet been to Gramado,
he quickly arranged to fetch us the following morning.
Tres Coroas.
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| Beautiful Buddhist Monastery of Chagdud Tulku Khadro Ling. |
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| Wendy this ones for you. |
We were still drinking our coffee when Mauro arrived at eight am,
eager to get underway. The first stop was at the small town of Tres Coroas where we visited the Tibetan Buddhist
monastery. This monastery nestles amongst the mountaintops. The craftsmanship and the setting rendered us speechless.
Gramado.
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| Alpine theme of Casa Italiano. |
Next stop was the Brazilian Alpine town of Gramado. This may seem a contradiction
in terms, but the resort town bills itself as being ‘naturally European’ and
indeed it does not resemble the rest of Brazil much. In 1824 the Serra Gaucha Mountains were settled by German
immigrants, who were soon followed by Italians and then Swiss. In this area of
Brazil, German is still widely spoken.
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| Freshly baked bread and cake at stall in Gramado selling like hot cakes. |
There is a ski resort and all the hotels and most of the houses
reflect the Alpine theme. We stopped at the town center and bought chocolates,
freshly baked granary bread from blue-eyed vendors with lederhosen Mauro snapped up the last
apple strudel and we settled for a coconut cake instead. The town has a Disney
feel about it and caters to children with a variety of theme parks. We stopped
at the steam train museum, before heading for nearby Canela.
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| Glass angel of Gramado. |
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| Steam museum replicates an accident. |
Canela.
Canela is a small town centered on a leafy square with a beautiful
Gothic stone cathedral. People in winter attire were out in full force. The
midday temperature reached 18 degrees c. We stopped for lunch at a restaurant
recommended by a local.
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| Gothic stone cathedral. |
Novo Petropolis.
Mauro then took us to Novo Petropolis where we visited the original German
settlement. Which is now incorporated into a park know as the Park of
Immigrants. Mauro arranged for us to pose with the local Umpah band,
or is it Opa band?
In this area of Brazil there are vineyards, too, but in keeping
with Brazil’s zero tolerance we gave them a miss. Instead, Mauro introduced us
to pinao which, when cooked are similar to chestnuts. Mauro stopped once more at a
butcher specializing in German sausage and after sharing his apple strudel with
us, back on board ‘Oryx’ left us with a couple of sausages, which we had to Google to cook! We were due to leave the next
day, but when Mauro came to say so long, our plans had changed. The wind was
heading us, so we stayed another day.
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| Our friend Mauro and his boat. |
Mauro took the opportunity to show us his
boat, introduce us to his mother and his eldest son and show us the home he is
building. His kindness knew no limits – he presented Pete with a guide to the Lagoa dos Patos and
eagerly accepted a copy of ‘Building Badger’ in exchange. Unfortunately Mauro doesn't do the Internet, so we may never see or hear from him again, but we will always
remember the experience. He managed to explain that despite the communication
barrier we were speaking with our hearts and also that we were living his
dream.
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| Pete and Mauro in the galley...oh, sorry, kitchen. |
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| Mauro's home has Tibetan flares. |
The following day we left Porto Alegre despite a thick veil of fog. We
motored out of the Yacht Club after extending our thanks to Carmen, the Club
secretary. Soon we were able to hoist the sails and sail through the slowly
dissipating wisps of fog.
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| Misty morning. |
We spent the night near the lighthouse where we had
experienced out Scylla and Charybdis effect, but anchored off a new beach. All
was calm. There was one other yacht in the anchorage.
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| Pete beards howler monkey to find hidden chapel. |
We sailed until the wind
dropped and then motored a bit, spending the night off Blackbeard's Island. (Ihla Barba Negra.)
Ihla Barba Negra.
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| Blackbeard's island |
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| Sun sets on Blackbeard's Island. |
Pete has allocated a certain amount of time to explore each area,
but Aeolus doesn't pay much attention, so when we had a good wind abaft the
beam we sailed within the shipping channel overnight, hoping to catch up with
Brian and Marta on ‘Saoirse Mor’.
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| Aeolus? |
Pelotas.
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| Approaching Pelotas. |
Our timing in the channel was perfect as we reached the narrows
with the staked shoals just after dawn. We stopped briefly in Pelotas, but misread the date on
Brian’s message and headed back to Rio Grande, only to find ‘Saoirse Mor’ well on
her way north.
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| Pelotas in the distance. |
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| Big ships manage narrow channel into Pelotas. |
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| Yacht Club Pelotas. |
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| Yacht Clubhouse. |
When we arrived at the Oceanographic Institute the ‘Bucaneiro’
was out on a trip, so we anchored off.
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| "Oryx" reefed down on leaving Rio Grande. Photo Sergio Klaes Roig. |
Checking the forecast, Pete decided to cut our visit in Rio Grande short and to make use of the
southerlies to get us up the coast. We left just after nine thirty on the Monday
morning. A friend of Joao's had taken some photos of us when we sailed into Rio Grande from Pelotas.
He had shared them via facebook Coincidentally Sergio was on a ferry as we were leaving and took some more
fabulous photographs of ‘Oryx’ under sail.
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| "Oryx" under sail. Photo by Sergio Klaes Roig. Note the bird! |
Although the southerly breeze shifted to the northwest by
midnight, the first day’s run was promising. We were hoping to call in at Tramandae and Torres, both with tricky entrances
exposed to the north and east. Unfortunately the wind died down and although
Pete tried to make up time and distance by motoring at night, this proved to be
useless as the wind and seas soon built up and I now like motoring to windward
far less than sailing to windward, which we duly did for the next three days.
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| Another yacht tacking against the north wind off Torres |
Of course Tramandae and Torres were out of the question
and even Laguna,
where we sheltered last year, was unreachable. We sailed on, eventually
finding shelter off Cabo Santa Marta Grande.
The headland looked beautiful, but going ashore was impossible due to the huge
swells.
Cabo Santa Marta.
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| Cabo Santa Marta was a welcome sight after days on a blustery sea. |
We sailed on the next morning, as the wind was shifting but were
unable to shelter at the next headland, because there were fishing boats and
crashing waves.
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| Fishermen off Cabo Santa Marta. |
Imbituba.
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| Small island provided shelter from the north wind. |
Eventually we anchored off a small island near Imbituba for the night and then as the wind
shifted to the south once more went into Imbituba itself where were planning to stay
overnight. A couple of fishermen came to offer to ferry us ashore and of course
we declined, proudly patting ‘Crake’.
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| Breakers on the beach prevented a closer look at the Tiki on the beach. |
However, when we watched them land in the
surf, we quickly changed our minds about going ashore and set sail once more
for Garopaba,
where we spent the night and the next day.
Garopaba.
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| Welcome arms of Garopaba Bay. |
Garopaba was once a small Azorean like fishing village, but is now a surfing hotspot with many trendy surfshops and restaurants catering to the summer tourists. The town is beautifully situated surrounded by forested hilltops which sweep down to the sea.We managed to row ashore and land on a tiny beach, despite the swell and our captive audience.
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| Boathouses flank the southern side of the bay. |
We explored the town, did some shopping and then laden down,
relaunched ‘Crake’. Pete was timing the sets of waves, while I waited to push
off, when a nearby fisherman came to help us. He helped me aboard and then
launched us between the sets. Brazilian’s of all walks of life were making our
stay even more memorable than usual.
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| Inshallah restaurant. |
questions and answers.
J.H. How your direct-drive
wind-vane self-steering worked out?
Pete The wind-vane steering works very well and is as
good as any self steering I have ever had, both manufactured and home
J.H. How have
the rudders worked out?
Pete I
have gone back to the original rudders as the 'new' ones did not work out
well.
Carly With
these rudders she almost sails herself to windward. They also ‘pop up’ when
caught on drift nets.
J.H. Where you are with your junk sail experiments?
Pete The
new sails are wing junk and they work OK, but I was expecting better performance than they give so I am not completely happy. Oryx struggles
to tack through 100 deg. but we have had big problems with the useless
anti fouling paint I put on. I have been trying for a long time to get hauled
out or finding suitable tides to put new anti fouling paint on. I can clean the
sides from the dinghy but the water has been too cold to scrub underwater and
maybe the performance will be much better with a clean bottom. Where it is warm
enough to scrub the weed grows like fury!
J.H.
How Oryx compares to CHINA MOON?
Pete I think that China Moon
has better sailing performance, closer winded and tacks much more easily than Oryx does. Not sure why this is the case as Oryx is much lighter and has
relatively more sail area and the hull shape is very similar. The accommodation
on Oryx is much better than China Moon's with the bridge deck.
J.H. Whether insulating CHINA MOON was
worth the weight, expense, and time?
Pete China Moon is a
better boat for being insulated, but I chose not to insulate Oryx because of
the time and weight. We have been having some cold weather recently and
condensation has been a problem but I still do not regret not insulating,
so far.
Carly I find the
condensation a nuisance.
J.H. Is a 10 m catamaran (compared to CM's ~11 m) large enough for safe ocean passages? Will
you sail Oryx at high latitudes, and in the Southern Ocean?
Pete I
do not have the experience to comment yet, but we plan to sail from Brazil to
Cape Town via Tristan de Cunha later in the year which should be a good test.
Obviously I feel Oryx is seaworthy enough to safely do the trip, but time will
tell.
J.H. What do you like about ORYX, what would you do
different?
Pete Oryx is a very comfortable
cruising home and she attracts favourable comments where ever she goes. I think Oryx would be a better boat if the hulls where fatter. The present waterline
beam to length ratio is a little over 12:1. This is probably needed with
the anti vortex panels, but they did not work very well on Oryx. Mr. Kohler talks of his average speed on his 'Pelican' as 9.6 knots! Maybe the
anti vortex panels work at those sorts of speed, but Oryx's average is somewhere
around 5 knots. Wider hulls (perhaps 9 or 10 to 1) would give less wetted surface and be better load carriers, we rarely get into double digits and will
reef down so that the self steering works reliably, so very slim hulls are not
needed.
Carly Pete takes
his averages from all sailing conditions, including light winds. I’d say that
‘Oryx’ average speed in a decent force 4 with reasonable seas is 6 or 7
knots, with an average of 5 – 6 going to windward. Our auto helm isn't installed yet and the self steering is good up to 8 or 9 knots, but we usually
slow down to have a more comfortable ‘ride’. We rarely use our sea berth,
because it is noisy and the bridge deck clearance is good enough to sleep
peacefully in the normal cabin, except when the sea is really rough.
John thanks for your questions, hope you don’t mind my two bits
worth, too, from a female-not-very-experienced-sailing point of view.
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| Featuring Fernando de Noronha. |
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